Hermetically sealed containers with luer tapered dispensing nozzles adapted to receive the hub of a hyperdermic needle assembly are known in the art. See, for example, FIG. 11 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,314 to Weiler which discloses a male luer connector adapted to receive the female hub of a hyperdermic needle. Internal threads in the connector engage lugs on the hub of the needle for securing the needle to the nozzle.
Although the connector shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,314 has proven useful, a separate insert is required to provide the connector feature.
Hermetically sealed containers produced by the so-called blow/fill/seal techniques such as, for example, the blow/fill/seal techniques shown and disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,763 to Weiler have gained widespread acceptance in the pharmaceutical field. Such containers are formed between cooperating molds that are closed around an extended length of a parison. This fabrication process, while efficient, necessarily results in a finished container with a mold seam or parting line.
The presence of such a seam on a dispensing nozzle is disadvantageous in applications where it is desired to mount a dispensing needle or spike on the nozzle because the seam may create a gap between mating surfaces through which liquid contents of the container can leak during the dispensing operation. It would thus also be desirable to provide a container with an improved nozzle that provides a liquid seal in the region of the mold seam. The present invention provides such an improved nozzle on a dispensing container.